Barrow is a type of funerary monuments common on all continents except Australia and Antarctica . It is usually characterized by the construction of an earthen embankment above the burial pit. Numerous types of mounds are distinguished, characterized by design features of the burial chamber and embankment. The name comes from the Turkic " korgan " - building, fortress [1] .
Content
Eurasia
Excavations of mounds in Russia began after the decree of Peter I of February 13 ( 24 ), 1718 [2] [3] . In the Great Steppe , including steppe Russia, mounds of almost all eras (from the Eneolithic to the present day) and various nomadic peoples - from the Indo-European to the Turkic language groups are represented. Some archaeological cultures of Eurasia are named after the mounds they left - the culture of burial mounds , the culture of Pskov long mounds , the culture of Novgorod hills .
A large number of mounds are located in the Republic of Khakassia . The most famous is the Bolshoi Salbyksky mound , discovered in 1739 by G.F. Miller and excavated in 1954-1956. expedition of the USSR Academy of Sciences under the leadership of S. V. Kiselyov.
The barrows of the British Isles , known since the Neolithic , are of great originality. English scientists have long distinguished between long and round mounds (including cupped mounds , of which stone cairns are considered a variety).
Indo-Europeans
The first mounds in the steppe zone date from the Eneolithic period ( 4 millennium BC ), the practice of their construction continues until the Middle Ages. According to the generally accepted mound hypothesis of the Lithuanian-American researcher Maria Gimbutas, the beginning of the construction of the mounds is associated with the spread of native Indo-European languages . The construction of burial mounds over burials is characteristic of many branches of the Indo-European tribe, especially for the Scythians ( Pazyryk ) and the Scandinavians ( Black Grave , Gnezdovo mounds , Old Uppsala ).
China and Japan
In China, the largest among these is the funeral pyramid of the first Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang. In Japan, the mounds were especially important in the IV-VI centuries. In this connection, this period in the history of the country was called the " mound ". The mounds were distinguished by a wide variety of shapes (from round to square) and sizes (perimeter up to 200 m).
America
The ancient mounds of North America are traditionally called "mounds." Therefore, a number of pre-Columbian American Indian cultures (including the Mississippian culture ) are known under the general name " builders of the mounds ." Mounds are divided into 3 main groups: ordinary rounded hills, figured hills , in the form of zoomorphic (see Serpent Mound ) and, less commonly, anthropomorphic figures and flat-topped platforms - foundations for temples and dwellings of the nobility. The largest of the latter is the “ Mound of the Monks ” in the ancient settlement of Kahokiya . [4] [5]
Presentation of a contemporary artist about a settlement on the Kinkade Hills ( Mississippi culture )
Reclaimed (restored) barrow of the Scythian era, Ukok plateau, Altai Republic
Varangian hills along Volkhov
Sectional mound
See also
- Kurgan hypothesis
- Burial Culture
Notes
- ↑ Ancient burial mounds // Kazakhstan. National Encyclopedia . - Almaty: Kazakh encyclopedias , 2005. - T. II. - ISBN 9965-9746-3-2 .
- ↑ Decree of Emperor Peter I Named, given to the Governors and Commandants on the procedure for awarding awards for freaks brought from the animal kingdom . February 13 ( 24 ), 1718
- ↑ Domansky J. Primeval Treasures // Young Artist. - 1988. - No. 3 . - S. 22-25 .
- ↑ Keram K.V. , 1979. - S. 205-242.
- ↑ Builders of funerary hills and cave dwellers, 1997. - S. 6-77.
Literature
- Kurgan // Great Soviet Encyclopedia : [in 30 vol.] / Ch. ed. A.M. Prokhorov . - 3rd ed. - M .: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969-1978.
- Keram K.V. First American: The Mystery of the Indians of the Pre-Columbian Era. - M.: Progress, 1979. - S. 205-242.
- Builders of funerary hills and inhabitants of caves / Per. from English - M .: TERRA, 1997. - (Encyclopedia "Disappeared Civilizations"). - S. 6—77. - ISBN 5 300 01182 7
- Murzin V. Yu. Cities on wheels // Melitopol Journal of Local Lore, 2018, No. 12, p. 26-31.
Links
- Site about Slavic and Russian barrows in Russia
- Popular science film Sarmatian Treasures